


Fake Palindromes

by magicmissile (trilogycal)



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, I'm Bad At Titles, Inspired by Music, M/M, Post-Episode: e067-069 Story and Song Parts 1-3, Potential Spoilers, author can't cook i hope it isn't obvious, bc i can't think of any lol, if this needs any tags just hmu & i'll add them
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-25
Updated: 2018-04-25
Packaged: 2019-04-27 17:35:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,531
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14430675
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trilogycal/pseuds/magicmissile
Summary: Taako makes breakfast. Lup asks some questions. Kravitz is late.





	Fake Palindromes

**Author's Note:**

> inspiration playlist: 
> 
> 1) fake palindromes -- andrew bird  
> 2) breakfast in the morning -- brandy haze, aj lova  
> 3) the good feeling -- smooth jazz family collective  
> 4) scrambled eggs with cheese -- gus hergert  
> 5) the morning after -- maze  
> 6) the real thing / the feeling -- civilian
> 
> no, not all of these songs are exactly the same kind of sappy slice-of-life-y that the fic is meant to have, if you look at their lyrics, but i Felt things while i listened to them, so here they are

"Well, well, _well_."

Taako heard her coming down the hall; heard the door creak as she cracked it behind her, the shuffling steps of her slipper-clad feet, heard the huge yawn that split her jaws wide. And yet, he jumps when she appears, clutching a bowl of half-whisked egg yolks to his chest like a secret that he forgot to hide. He slowly, skittishly, peeks over his shoulder. 

Lup smirks at him from the doorway, arms crossed, hip cocked. Barold's plush, plaid robe hangs from her shoulders, lazily pulled together and tied by the sash around the waist. Her hair is an absolute bird's nest, halfheartedly pulled into a bun while she used the bathroom. She hasn't magic'd her roots away yet, and they're dark brown among the fiery orange shades of her current 'do.

"If it isn't Taako," she says. "Cooking breakfast. At eight in the morning." 

"Those... are true statements," Taako reluctantly agrees, still holding the bowl of eggs close to his chest like a protective mother. Slowly, he loosens his grip, and renews his firm whisking of the yolks within. 

"True statements indeed, Koko." Lup unfolds her arms, stashing them away in the large, hip-high pockets of the robe, and strides forward. Her eyes rake over the spread on the counter: a trio of sliced bananas, diced strawberries, freshly washed grapes and blueberries; a tray of cooling muffins, apparently chocolate chip, placed on the opposite side of the stove; skillets are alight on the burners, sizzling eggs and popping bacon creating a delicious, delicious harmony. Even the coffee maker is busy, bubbling and trickling away. "True statements that are also very, very strange, due to the fact that they _are_ true." 

Pondering this, she takes a muffin. Taako huffs at her impudence, but doesn't wish to be burned this early in the morning, so he stifles the urge to rap her hand with the wooden spoon sitting peacefully next to the fruit. 

Lup peels back the wrapping, and takes a bite of the warm confection. "But just _why_ are these true statements true?" she asks through a mouthful of chocolatey perfection. "Why are you, Taako, up this early? Barry isn't even awake yet, and that man's circadian rhythm is a force to be reckoned with." 

"Probably because you boned him all night long," Taako mutters. "Way to cast Silence on your walls halfway through Round _Two_ , by the way."

Lup waves the jab away like it's a physical pest. "Be grateful that I cast it at all!" she chirps. "Now, spill: are you up this early because you got post-boning insomnia too?" 

Taako returns to whisking. "Nope!" 

Her confidence wavers. "You're not..?" Lup blinks. "Huh. Guess it's just me, then?" 

"No," Taako answers. "I didn't meditate, either." 

Lup's cocky teasing halts, and she grows concerned, eyebrows creasing as she looks at her brother. "So it wasn't boning-related insomnia, then? Are you okay, Taako, what's bothering you..??" 

Taako waves his whisk at her, and she jerks away from a spatter of drippy yellow yolks. "It's.. complicated," he says slowly. "It's kind of boning-related, but? Kind of not? Taako's not real sure how he can explain this to his sister, of all people." 

That makes a curl of nostalgia rise in Lup, like a wisp of smoke; they used to share everything with each other, intimate details and all. "You can tell me anything, Koko," she whispers. Her hand finds his arm, fingers curling around his dark bicep. "Anything in the whole entire universe. Please don't _ever_ think you can't tell me anything."

"I know all of _that_ , babe," Taako murmurs back, patting her beseeching hand comfortingly. "I promise, it's nothing super duper serious. I didn't wear plaid, leopard print, studded leather accessories and neon hot pink all in the same outfit, unlike _some_ people." 

Lup harrumphs; _some_ people simply have no taste. "What did you do, then, you fucking doofus?" 

"I." He suddenly.. clams up. Shoulders stiffen, back bends, earring-studded ears droop under the steely weight of sudden anxiety. Taako tilts the bowl of egg yolks over one prepped skillet, pausing to let the eggs sizzle while they settle, before placing it down and looking away. Curls of hair have fallen from the loose bun he's pulled his locks into, blonde whispering against caramel-colored skin just like hers, and Lup gently tucks one back behind his ear, the one with a golden hoop that matches her own. 

"You...?" she asks gently. 

"I," Taako says, "told Kravitz that I love him." 

Lup's eyes widen. "Oh, _Taako_." 

Her twin brother looks almost embarrassed as he gazes down at the skillet, and gingerly pushes and pulls at the egg curds as they clump together. "He likes his eggs scrambled," he continues, "and hella cheesy. Like, he likes _so_ much cheese in them. I'm in love with a fucking lunatic, Lup." 

"Ohh, Taako." She turns him around by the shoulders, staring at him with eyes full of pride. "I'm so _happy_ for you." 

Taako's ears twitch as Lup embraces him tightly. His skinny arms struggle to slip under her own more muscular ones, wrapped around his biceps, but they find a way. A hug is shared between the twins, warm comfort thrumming through each like a vibrating band. 

The moment is slightly ruined when Lup sneaks a bite of her muffin over his shoulder. 

"So, where _is_ Ghost Rider?" she asks, once he shoves her away and brushes crumbs off of his shoulder. He's returned to Kravitz's eggs, and she's hopped up on the counter, sneaking grapes between bites of chocolate chip muffin. "Not still laid out in bed, I hope. You are making this continental breakfast for _him_ , after all, and if he's not here for it then I'll eat every single thing my goddamn self!" 

Taako shakes his head, tucking hair behind his other ear. "Popped by 'the office' to grab 'some paperwork' so he could 'work from home' for a few days." The air quotes audibly saturate his voice, he doesn't even have to bend his fingers in the appropriate places. "It's been a hot minute since he left, but knowing him, he probably got wrapped up in a chat with Bird Mom." 

Lup perks up at the mention of her soon-to-be employer. "About me and Barold, I hope. I can't wait another second to start this reaper gig!" She pilfers a bit of strawberry when Taako glances away to grab the pepper. 

Taako opens his mouth to reply, but the sound of the fabric of reality tearing covers his words. Speak of the devil, a rift opens up right behind him, and Kravitz steps through, in full skeleton garb, eyes blazing with the fires of the undead forces. "So sorry I'm late," he says as he hits terra firma, the portal sealing behind him with a wave of his hand. "My Queen asked me to stay and discuss... Oh, er, good morning, Lup." The twins share a Look. 

" _Buenos dias, mi cuñado_ ," Lup quips. 

Kravitz looks mildly alarmed when Taako whirls around and smacks the shit out of her. "Um," he says hesitantly, because he's still in that awkward phase around his boyfriend's entirely-too-shameless sister for some reason, despite being in love with _Taako_ , of all people, "How.. are you..?" 

"I'm greater than great, Skeletor," Lup says, shooting Taako a beaming grin. "My darling baby brother made breakfast!"

"I noticed!" Kravitz turns back to Taako, a smile on his handsome face. "You remembered how I like my eggs," he says softly, in a certain way that barely hides the fact that he loves that Taako had the presence of mind for his egg preferences. 

Taako shrugs, flicking off the burner after carefully examining the eggs. "I remembered how you like your coffee, too, stud, but I'm going on strike if you make me fix it for you." 

Kravitz laughs gently and leans down to kiss Taako on the temple. "I would _never_." 

Lup feels like she's intruding on something a little private, but that feeling vanishes when Taako turns fully toward her, watching Kravitz move toward the coffee machine -- she's been looking at his right side this entire time, even through the hug -- and she notices a tiny sapphire stud pierced through his left earlobe; she remembers watching them run to each other on a horizon of dreary gray, embracing on a disc of gleaming blue ground. A smirk grows on her face, and she hops off the counter that she's perched on. 

"I hate to hit and run, Koko, but I 'suddenly' feel like I've been hit by a train," she says, arching her back and stretching her arms up high. Lup yawns, then shoots Taako a finger gun-wink combo. "Save something for us later, 'kay? I'll see you in, like. Ten hours. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" 

Taako smiles warmly back at her. Muffin in hand, Lup spins on her slipper-clad heel and bends her fingers in a dainty wave at Kravitz, who raises his newly-full mug at her. Taking another bite of it, nearly taking the peeling with her, she quietly laughs. 

"Well, well, well," she murmurs, sauntering back down the corridor. "Well, well, _well_."

**Author's Note:**

> sorry for inaccuracies, it's been months since i listened to the balance arc & also i'm tired (it's 3:30 am). i've probably forgotten how these characters Actually are, but. shrug.
> 
> thanks for reading, pls leave a comment & some kudos if u enjoyed 
> 
> :"^)


End file.
